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Playing with human rights, toying with the nation’s future

07 Oct 2022

As the country’s human rights record has evolved into a decisive factor in not only Sri Lanka’s reputation in the international context, but also in attempts to obtain international assistance to deal with the recent economic downturn, the Sri Lankan Government recently announced its plans to set up, before next March, a truth-seeking mechanism based on the final report of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) for the Appraisal of the Findings of Previous Commissions and Committees and the Way Forward, which was appointed by erstwhile President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The CoI was tasked with investigating and reporting, or taking necessary action, based on the findings of previous commissions or committees appointed to investigate incidents of human rights violations, serious violations of international humanitarian law, and other such offences. Sri Lanka has a long history of unaddressed human rights violations that date back to the 1960s, while various projects and mechanisms aimed at addressing the same have a similarly long history. There is, however, a persisting question as to what positive results have come of such attempts. In the post-war context too, this sentiment remains valid, as various efforts aimed at looking into human rights violations that are said to have occurred during the war are yet to deliver the expected results. That is why Sri Lanka still keeps introducing various programmes, such as the mentioned truth-seeking mechanism. In a context where Sri Lanka has come under fire from the international community for its lethargy and incompetence in looking into human rights-related allegations, including those that occurred after the war, this programme, if supported by genuine effort, can play a crucial role in restoring the reputation the country has lost. However, as much as this plan sounds like a genuine attempt to address some of the human rights-related concerns that have gone unaddressed for over a decade, the extent to which those within and outside the country could expect this mechanism to bring about some tangible change is in question. That uncertainty is predominantly due to successive Sri Lankan governments’ track record concerning addressing human rights violations. During the aforesaid period, governments under three Presidents – Mahinda Rajapaksa, Maithripala Sirisena, and Gotabaya Rajapaksa – delivered a plethora of promises about bringing human rights violators, including those allegedly implicated in war crimes, to book, but did not deliver on such promises; instead, certain convicted high-ranking military officials were pardoned. These governments also made much fanfare about initiatives such as the Office on Missing Persons, which, in recent months, came under fire for its failure to effectively and efficiently carry out operations. What is more, the country reneged on its promises with regard to previous UN resolutions in which Sri Lanka had an extremely important role. In the current context, we cannot forget the country’s prevailing economic and social situation, the solutions to which depend a great deal on the international community’s perception of Sri Lanka, especially with regard to human rights. There is no doubting the fact that the country requires, and is awaiting, international assistance to overcome these crises. However, as flaws on Sri Lanka’s end with regard to the aforesaid efforts have given the international community the impression that the country is incapable of handling the human rights situation in a responsible and transparent manner, changing that impression, and thus securing international assistance, will require genuine effort. Due to this situation, insincere efforts in dealing with the human rights situation are tantamount to playing with the country’s future. In fact, this is no longer a matter of restoring the reputation that the country has lost as far as its human rights situation is concerned. This is now a matter of the country’s future, as the international assistance that the country needs depends considerably on how genuine Sri Lanka is concerning the protection of human rights.


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